


It's not a cry that you hear at night

by vickytokio



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Touch-Starved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-05
Updated: 2019-07-05
Packaged: 2020-06-09 17:35:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19480732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vickytokio/pseuds/vickytokio
Summary: One would think the hardest part about deaths would be the feeling of loss, but more than that, it was just so much work.





	It's not a cry that you hear at night

One would think the hardest part about deaths would be the feeling of loss, but more than that, it was just _so much work_.

They'd been in and out of the hospital the whole day, going back and forth from the waiting room crowded with their friends and family, to the police station checking for the procedures necessary, to the house to get fresh clothes to deliver to the funerary agency. Arthur was a mess, he cried as soon as they got the message and had been just looking lost and wandering from one place to the other the whole day. Morgana... Well, she was collected perhaps, but her hand was still bruised from where she punched the wall earlier yelling at the staff and there was a sort of seething helplessness in how calm she was acting. Everyone was handling it differently, but there were a lot of tears and hugs going around.

Merlin couldn't stop though.

The minute they got word that Gwen was gone, he'd gone into problem solving mode. He'd consoled Arthur on the way, tried giving Morgana any encouragement he could after she'd taken from Arthur the only hug allowed by her so far. He'd been running errands all day to keep things running smoothly: sending messages, signing documents, picking up stuff and people from around town to bring to the hospital, keeping everybody fed (and much later realizing he hadn't eaten yet, once he started shaking).

The day passed like a blur and suddenly there was nothing to do but wait. Go home and rest.

They left the waiting room and walked to the tube a few blocks away, Arthur was still looking dazed and Merlin was feeling suddenly lost with nothing left to solve. He texted Gwaine about it, since he didn't want to bring it up to Arthur right now, and his friend told him it was time to slow down. Eat real food, take a bath, sleep.

They got home and Merlin busied himself with making some dinner, just for something else to do, while Arthur took a shower. The pasta was almost done when he heard his husband's bare feet padding the floor and suddenly he was embraced from behind, Arthur's chin on his shoulder.

Merlin's breath hitched.

He turned around, burying into the hug with his face pressed against the crook of Arthur's neck and sobbed without warning. His whole body shook with the force of the day catching up.

Arthur just held him tighter, tearing up again. In truth, the hug had been for his own benefit, but he was glad to have Merlin unwind.

Eventually his breathing calmed enough for him to disentangle himself and turn off the stove. Merlin wiped his eyes and went to get plates, before they both sat silently to eat, but this time he made sure his knee kept touching Arthur's and when they finally laid down, it was to curl up around one another, holding tight like a moment of distraction could be enough to tear them apart. They had just had proof it could happen.

**Author's Note:**

> OMG, this got sad, I'm so sorry! It's 100% based in real life though, every character here is someone I know (and myself).


End file.
